


Merry Christmas (I Don't Want to Fight Tonight)

by galmaegi



Category: Infinite (Band)
Genre: Christmas Fluff, Gen, Gift Exchange, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-25
Updated: 2012-12-25
Packaged: 2017-12-19 08:10:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,554
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/881498
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/galmaegi/pseuds/galmaegi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Infinite has a gift exchange, and Sungyeol's determined to make it very, very difficult for Sungjong.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Merry Christmas (I Don't Want to Fight Tonight)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [anaplian](https://archiveofourown.org/users/anaplian/gifts).



Nobody seems to know whose idea the gift exchange was. At first, Sungjong suspects Sunggyu - it's the right combination of team-building exercise and personal greed. But Sunggyu seems as lightly disoriented as the rest of them when they assemble in the living room around a hat with seven little slips of paper in it.

"What happens if you draw your own name?" asks Dongwoo.

"You put it back in and take another one," says Sungyeol. The authoritative tone of his voice is suspicious, but he doesn't turn when Sungjong tilts his head at him.

"All right, I'll start," says Sunggyu, crawling forward and taking a name out of the hat. He squints at it, then looks up, his eyes slowly drifting around the circle at the other six. "Okay," he says, going back to his starting position. "Someone go next."

Sungjong draws Dongwoo's name and smiles to himself, ideas for possible presents already running through his head. Dongwoo is easy to buy for: he has a set of certain things that he likes, but at the same time he's always interested in new things. Sungjong's thoughts are interrupted by a loud cheer from Sungyeol as he folds up his paper slip and sticks it in his pocket.

"Did you get yourself?" asks Woohyun with a smirk.

"Nope," says Sungyeol, and he grins right at Sungjong. Sungjong raises his eyebrows, but doesn't say anything. If Sungyeol wants to give it away this early, that's his prerogative, he figures.

Once they all have their names, they go over the rules: nothing over 20,000 won; they can recruit one other person or a manager to help them, if necessary, but only one; and they'll exchange the gifts at the group Christmas dinner at the end of the week. "Just like last year," says Sungjong, thinking of the MV shoot, browsing through knick-knacks and duly showing them off to the camera.

"Yah, you're not allowed to give 'yourself' this year," says Myungsoo, prodding Sungyeol in the thigh with his foot.

Sungyeol shoves back, still smiling at Sungjong. "Oh, don't worry. I've got a plan," he says, and the play of light on his teeth sends a chill down Sungjong's spine.

 

\---

 

Sungjong gets his out of the way quickly. He convinces Geonam to take an early-morning trip with him to Idae, wrapped up in scarves, where he buys two 10,000-won knit hats with big round earflaps. One is lime green with a frog's face stitched into the front, and the other is zebra-striped with a fringe along the top like a mane. Sungjong tries them both on first and they look silly and babyish on him, but he already knows they'll look good on Dongwoo, and they'll keep his ears warm.

That night he wraps them up in the bathroom, carefully pressing the shiny gold paper around the soft, round shapes. There's a quick knock on the door. "Just a minute," he calls, ripping a piece of tape.

Hoya opens the door and pokes his head in. "Sungjongie, can I come in?"

Sungjong tucks the mostly-wrapped present under his knees before turning around. "You're already halfway there."

"It's not urgent," says Hoya. "Sungyeol just wanted me to ask you about the gift thing."

Sungjong scoffs, tossing his bangs out of his eyes. "He's not subtle."

"He wouldn't be Sungyeol if he was. Anyway, what he wanted me to ask you was - these are his words - 'how does he feel about baby octopus?'"

"Uh. It's okay, I guess," says Sungjong. "I had it once when I was a kid. Is he going to cook it for me?"

"No, I'm pretty sure he meant... Alive. In a tank."

"Get out." Sungjong throws the nearest washcloth at Hoya, and he ducks out of the room and closes the door behind him. Sungjong sighs heavily and pulls his gift out from under his knees, smoothing his hand over the new wrinkles in the paper.

The rest of the week, Sungjong is on edge. He half regrets buying his gift for the exchange so early because he has nothing to distract him from constantly monitoring Sungyeol. Sungyeol doesn't help things by making himself constantly in Sungjong's view, watching him over his shoulder in the van or whispering to the other members while glancing over at Sungjong the whole time. One morning Sungjong is waiting for the coffee machine to warm up when Sungyeol wanders into the dorm, face rosy from being outside, carrying a very large package with the sides sticking out at odd angles. He grins and waves at Sungjong as he passes, without a word. Sungjong sighs and rubs his eyes with one hand.

Another night, he and Sungyeol are the only ones in the dorm, having gotten a ride back with Hyowan instead of with the others. Sungyeol is on the phone in the kitchen when Sungjong wanders in to get a yogurt.

"You're sure it'll be here by tomorrow?" Sungyeol is asking, a look of stern concentration on his face. "All five pieces?" Sungjong raises his eyebrows and Sungyeol glances over to him. "Wait, I have to go. Okay, thank you."

"Five pieces?" asks Sungjong as Sungyeol hangs up.

"You didn't hear anything," says Sungyeol. He pushes past Sungjong to the fridge, but he doesn't take anything, just opens it and looks inside. It's mostly empty except for yogurt, juice boxes, eggs, and the hardened remains of Dongwoo's birthday cake. "Hmm."

"Yah, just stick your head outside if you want to cool off," says Sungjong, hitting Sungyeol on the head lightly.

Sungyeol hums. "Just seeing if there's enough room."

"Enough room for..."

Sungyeol grins at him, closes the fridge door and skips out of the room. "I'm gonna take a shower now, so don't use the bathroom, okay?"

Just for that, Sungjong waits until he can hear the water running, then turns on all the hot water taps in the house and listens to Sungyeol screech.

 

\---

 

The group dinner takes place at the same restaurant as last year, but this time they all arrive at once, gifts tucked into backpacks or under their arms. Sungjong can't see what Sungyeol's got. He hopes that doesn't mean it's too big to carry with him.

They go around the table in a circle. Sungjong taps his knees the whole time, anticipation sour in his stomach. Even when Sunggyu opens a package of animal print underwear from Hoya and immediately starts sinking under the table, covering his face, he can only chuckle, still watching Sungyeol as he leans over and waves a pair of the panties in Sunggyu's face. But he's glad when Dongwoo's face lights up at the hats, and he puts the zebra one on immediately.

Finally it's Sungyeol's turn, and Sungjong braces himself on the sides of his chair as Sungyeol slowly takes out a wrapped box. He watches as Sungyeol holds the box against his chest for a few moments, eyes scanning the others. Then he pushes it out toward Woohyun. Sungjong's jaw drops. "Merry Christmas!"

Woohyun tears open the green and white-striped paper and lifts the lid off the box. "Hey!" he exclaims, and starts laughing. He holds up the box: it's full of Sungyeol character socks, a bad rendition of his outfit from the _Over the Top_ photoshoot.

Sungjong looks from the box to Sungyeol. "But wait, weren't... Didn't you..."

Sunggyu taps Sungjong on the arm. He's holding a small box wrapped in blue paper. "Merry Christmas," he says, beaming. "I hired Yeollie to throw you off. Did it work?"

Sungjong sputters, taking the box from Sunggyu. "You're really unbelievable, hyung," he says. "Hiring other people to do your dirty work." Sungyeol reaches across the table and he and Sunggyu high-five.

Inside the box is a small pair of metal earrings, one an S and the other a J. "Oh, wow, thanks," says Sungjong, and he means it. "At least you have better taste than Sungyeol." He glances over at Woohyun's box of socks.

Later, as they're returning to the dorm, Sungjong grabs the arm of Sungyeol's sweater and he stops. "Yah, you're not getting away that easily," he says. "You're really something. What was all that about? Getting Hoya to bother me and everything."

"We'll catch up," Sungyeol calls to the others. He turns and faces Sungjong. "I did a good job, didn't I?" he says. "Hoya says you got really mad about the octopus thing."

"I did not get mad," Sungjong huffs. "I should've known something was up, you were being way too obvious."

"I do have something for you, though," says Sungyeol, putting his hands behind his back, "to make up for it."

"Not socks, I hope."

"Nope." Sungyeol takes a breath, then leans forward. Sungjong knows what's coming, because they've done this before, but that time it was stiff and dry and posed and hot under the stage lights. This time it's just them in the snow, and Sungyeol's lips push against his only briefly, soft and a little chapped, before he pulls back. "Merry Christmas," he says.

Sungjong laughs once, a big puff of white in the air, then he steps closer to Sungyeol. "It's gonna take more than that to make it up to me," he says, and he hooks his hand around Sungyeol's neck and pulls him in again.


End file.
